This is the ultimate keto chocolate cake recipe! It’s moist and rich, with a deep chocolate flavor and perfect texture. Dairy free options too.
You want the best keto chocolate cake? Okay fine, you asked for it! At the request of many readers, I am finally sharing the chocolate cake from The Ultimate Guide to Keto Baking.
This is the recipe that people rave about most after they purchase my book. This is the keto chocolate cake that wins everyone over, even the harshest keto critics.
This is the chocolate cake that no one can believe is low carb, sugar-free, and even dairy-free.
The secret to its fabulosity? Mayonnaise! Read on to find out more.
The Ultimate Keto Chocolate Cake
I have developed any number of low carb chocolate cake recipes in my day. There are so many wonderful ways to make it, all with little variations. Like Keto Texas Sheet Cake, or my low carb Slow Cooker Chocolate Cake.
But sometimes you want just want the classics. And what’s more classic than a moist two layer chocolate cake with creamy chocolate frosting?
When I wrote my book, I aimed for a good mix of both the classics and more unique recipes. I wanted to show people how amazing and versatile keto baking really can be. And I flatter myself that I achieved that goal.
So creating a really good keto chocolate cake was of the utmost importance. You can’t have a baking book that calls itself “The Ultimate Guide” without that, now can you?
But the response to this cake blew my mind. My readers and fans have gone nuts for it, have shared it with friends and family, and have sung its praises far and wide. And for that I am ever so grateful.
How to make Keto Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake
Don’t be intimidated by this cake, as it’s actually quite easy to make. Be sure to check out the video in my recipe card for all the tips and tricks!
Grease and line your cake pans
Grease two 8 inch cake pans and then line them with parchment paper circles. You can buy pre-cut circles like these ones (very useful!), or you can simply cut them out yourself. This helps keep your cake from sticking, no matter how good, or not, your cake pans are.
Whisk the dry ingredients
This is an almond-flour based recipe, but you can try substituting sunflower seed flour if you need to be nut free. And the espresso powder is optional, but it does help deepen the chocolate flavor. I promise it won’t taste like coffee in the end.
Stir in the mayonnaise
Mayonnaise takes the place of butter and creates an unbelievably moist cake. It also makes the cake easier than many, because there is no need to cream the fat with the sweetener. One less step and one less bowl to clean!
Whisk in the other wet ingredients
The only other additions are eggs, water, and vanilla. Because it’s made with mayonnaise, this keto chocolate cake it totally dairy free.
Bake until just firm
Baking is said to be a science, but knowing when your cakes are done is more of an art, in my opinion. Every oven is different, and that’s why my recipes give you a range of bake time.
Tactile and visual cues are much more accurate. So in this case, you want the cake to feel firm to the touch, and spring back when lightly pressed.
How to frost keto chocolate cake
You have lots of options here and you are not limited to the dairy free frosting recipe I included. The sky’s the limit! Here are some other delicious ideas:
- Best Keto Chocolate Frosting
- Keto Swiss Meringue Buttercream
- Chantilly Cream Frosting
- Sugar Free Peanut Butter Frosting
- Caramel Frosting (you will need to make 1.5 times the amount for a two layer cake).
- Cookies and Cream Frosting
Can you make keto chocolate cake in advance?
This is a great recipe for making ahead by a day or two. I think keto frosting are always best fresh, so I recommend making the cakes and frosting it on the day you plan to serve it.
The cake layers can be frozen, tightly wrapped, for up to 3 months. You can also freeze the finished cake, but the frosting may change consistency somewhat after it thaws.
More amazing keto cake recipes
- Keto Black Forest Cake
- Brownie Bottom Keto Cheesecake
- Cinnamon Walnut Coffee Cake
- Keto Devil’s Food Cake
- The Best Coconut Flour Cupcakes
Keto Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
Cake
- 2 cups (224 g) almond flour
- 3/4 cup (136.5 g) Swerve Sweetener
- 2/3 cup (57.33 g) cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1 tsp espresso powder, (optional)
- 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) salt
- 1 cup (224 g) mayonnaise
- 3 large eggs
- 1/3 cup (78.86 g) water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Dairy Free Chocolate Frosting
- 2 ounces (56.7 g) unsweetened chocolate, chopped
- 3/4 cup plus 1 tbsp coconut oil, divided
- 4 ounces (113.4 g) dairy free cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup (182 g) powdered Swerve Sweetener
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 to 1/2 cup (75.33 g) full fat coconut milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F and grease two 8-inch round cake pans. Line the bottoms of the pans with parchment and grease the parchment.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, sweetener, cocoa powder, baking powder, espresso powder, and salt.
- Stir in the mayonnaise, eggs, water, and vanilla extract until well combined. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans and spread to the edges and smooth the tops.
- Bake 20 to 25 minutes, until the cakes are just firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pans for at least 20 minutes, then flip out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Peel off the parchment paper.
Dairy Free Frosting
- Place the chocolate and 1 tbsp of the coconut oil in a microwave safe bowl. Melt on high in 30 second increments, stirring in between, until smooth. Allow to cool to lukewarm. Alternatively, you can melt in a heatproof bowl over a pan of barely simmering water.
- Place the remaining coconut oil in a large bowl. If it is very hard, microwave it for 15 seconds or so. It should be softe enough to beat without being melted. Add the cream cheese and beat until smooth. Add the sweetener and vanilla extract and beat until well combined.
- Drizzle in the melted chocolate and beat again until smooth. Add the coconut milk a few tablespoons at a time until a spreadable consistency is achieved.
To assemble
- Place one layer of cake on a large plate or cake platter. Top with one third of the frosting, spreading to the edges.
- Gently place the second layer of cake on top and spread the top with another third of the frosting.
- Spread the the sides with the remaining frosting.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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I have yet to have ANYONE say this cake is amazing, although I use the chocolate buttercream icing and put it in mini muffin tins, I get 48 of those
This was as delicious as the full carb one I used to make when I was younger. I used mayonnaise in that cake as well!
Thanks for the chocolate fix!
What a great cake!! This was so delicious. I used the, Best Keto Chocolate Frosting, from this site and it was perfect. Double the frosting recipe to cover the double layer cake. This will be on my list for the next time I need a cake.
Made this tonight. The cake was moist, but a bit too decadent for my tastes. My wife still loved it, but agreed it would have been better dialed back a bit. Next time I think I’ll leave out the espresso powder and perhaps cut back on the cocoa powder. For the buttercream frosting I used a mix of allulose and erythritol. Unfortunately the erythritol crystallized, resulting in some grittiness. It was much better before it set. I also felt the frosting could also have benefited from less sweetener. Next time I might go with a straight substitution of allulose (without adjusting 70% to dial back the sweetness). Appreciate the recipe, I’m sure it will be 5 star after adjusting for personal preferences.
Had another slice tonight and like another reviewer I could definitely taste the mayo! It’s masked by the rich chocolate but it’s there and once you realize what it is it’s hard to ignore and offputting. Don’t think we will make this cake again. FWIW used the Primal Kitchen mayo linked above.
I have not made this cake but I am going to. I have made the DingDong cake and if you are a chocoholic, like me, THIS CAKE IS FOR YOU!!!
I love your baked goods. This however, wound up tasting like mayo. Oddly, the raw dough did not have that taste. In rereading everything, I did forget the 1/3 cup water. All the other ingredients and steps as the recipe states were followed. Idk what went wrong.
What mayo did you use? I don’t taste it AT ALL. 🙂
Hello,
Thanks for this recipe. I worked for Lakanto and have eaten countless keto/lowcarb sweets over the years. I started keto since I moved to Texas and have been loving almond flour baking with my lakanto sweeteners. I ran out of cocoa powder so I got some more at costco. Every time I’ve tried to make some sort of keto chocolate cake now including this one, the cake turns out so dry! I keep trying to figure out what it is. My first instinct was maybe my sweetener is just old and has been affected by the humidity. But it has been that way this entire time and I was still able to make a delicious moist chocolate cake. Then it occured to me, when I got more cocoa powder, I just got whatever was at costco at the time, which was technically cacao powder, not cocoa powder. online resources say these are interchangeable but I wonder if that’s why the cake is dry and bland. Your thoughts would be appreciated. I used all fresh ingredients including primal kitchen mayo which is oil and egg.
Yes, natural Cacao does tend to be more dry than dutched cocoa powder. It doesn’t mean you can’t use it but you may need to add more oil to offset it.
Do you know if this would be successful in a 9×13? How would it change the baking time? Thank you so much for sharing the great recipes!
It would be successful but I can’t guide you on the baking time since I didn’t make mine that way. Start with 20 minutes and check on it frequently after that.
Hi – ok, how did you get ‘keto sprinkles’? You didn’t talk about that at all. I’d make it without them, but I think that would complete the ‘illusion’ (I make things all the time that extended family won’t even try because “hey, he’s keto…..move on…”. 🙁
Hi there just do a search on her home page and you will find the recipe
She mentioned in the video that she got them from an etsy shop. I believe it was this one…
https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheSprinkleCompany
@Bill, she actually has an easy recipe for making them. I bought a playdough extruder set and use that to make a couple of different shapes.
https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/keto-sugar-free-sprinkles/
This cake was amazing! I made it to take to my family’s Greek easter celebration and it was a hit even with the non-keto eater. One keto family member even double checked with me that it was actually keto bc it was just that good, she couldn’t believe it. I use your recipes all the time and am definitely adding this one to the list of go to cakes for events. I was curious if this cake could be tweeked into a vanilla cake but just omitting the cocoa powder? I use one of your vanilla cake recipes now that is great itself but THIS cake is just soooo moist I’d love to be able to make a vanilla version too.
I am so glad you liked it! You can never just omit cocoa powder from a recipe… it’s a bit like flour, it adds bulk and consistency. And since it’s so much more fine and absorbent than almond flour, you’d need to replace it with quite a bit more almond flour to make up the difference. I think you’d need at least another full cup of almond flour, if not another 1 1/3 cup.
Only keto cake Hubs not only liked but asked for again again!
Thanks so much!
Omg, your recipes are a game changer. This chocolate cake recipe is so delicious, best keto cake out there. I was surprised when the recipe called for a cup of mayonnaise but it made the cake so moist and delicious.! I used a new sweetener substitute called Purecane and I like it more than any of the others. Comes in confectioner sugar also for the frosting. I just read your post comparing sweetener substitutes and would love to hear your opinion on Purecane sweetener and if I should be using it for keto.
Thanks for all your delicious recipes, I am hooked! I wish I knew how to add a picture it turned out so nice!
I followed the recipe but it was very dry and ended up throwing it away. I knew I would not eat or serve it up to a guest. Disappointed because I love the recipes from this site which usually turn up very nice. The 2 cakes I made did not rise…maybe the reason why they are so heavy and dry…same thing happenned with KETO VANILLA BIRTHDAY CAKE….Tasted good but was flat and more like a cookie base.
I am sorry you are having trouble but there is an issue on your end and I wish I knew what… if things aren’t rising and are dry. Both of these cakes rise and are nice and moist. So… please list the EXACT brands of ingredients and what kind of pans you are using. Then I might be able to diagnose it.
PS – right after you commented, I got another comment with a rave review. Since the vast majority are rave reviews, I know it’s an issue with something you are using or doing… so I’d like to help if I can.
I always check out the negative reviews so I can read your retort. You don’t suffer fools. Love it.
Well in this case, I’d really like to help the reader discover what the issue is. Sadly, she has not returned…. It’s just that I do know that, done right, this cake is anything but dry!
Hi, what modifications would I make if I wanted to use 9 inch cake pans?
Also, I have monkfruit sweetener, would that be okay?
Thank you!!
It will just bake faster so keep your eye on it. As for “monk fruit sweeteners”, they are usually mostly erythritol. If so, they should be okay but please don’t be fooled by that marketing gimmick. 🙂
This cake is to die for! I put less sweetener in ( we just like it that way) and instead of the water I make a double shot of espresso, to top it off I make a chocolate ganache…..would not suggest eating this before bedtime!!
Once again Carolyn, you and your recipes ROCK!!
Thank you for all of your hard work and dedication!
You make low carb and keto eating exciting and delicious!!
So glad to hear it!
Made this for my birthday this year and my family dubbed it the best cake I’ve ever made! Perfectly moist and chocolaty. I’ve always loved mayonnaise cake, and was so happy to see you had a recipe for a keto version. For this cake, I was inspired by an old “cake mix doctor” recipe from our pre-keto days, and prepared it in a parchment-lined springform pan that I pre-loaded with one recipe of your pecan syrup before baking. Topped with whipped cream and a sprinkle of pecans crushed with a small handful of chocolate chips. Oh my goodness. Heaven!
Happy birthday and I am so happy to hear that!